Louisiana man convicted of Human Trafficking of a Minor faces life in prison

Isiah Mincey (Booking Photo)

SAN BERNARDINO, Calif.– A 30-year-old Louisiana man was convicted Tuesday of multiple counts related to the trafficking of a 17-year-old victim for sex acts.

A San Bernardino county jury found Isiah Mincey of Lake Charles, Louisiana, guilty of 1 count of Pimping a Minor Over Age 16, 1 count of Pandering by Procuring a Minor Over 16, 1 count of Pandering by Procuring, 1 count of False Imprisonment by Violence, 1 count of Assault by Means Likely to Produce Great Bodily Injury, 2 counts of Corporal Injury to Cohabitant, 1 count of Pimping, 1 count of Unlawful Sexual Intercourse and 1 count of Human Trafficking of a Minor for a Sex Act by Force.

Mincey is scheduled to be sentenced Nov. 14, 2015 in Rancho Cucamonga Superior Court. He faces 15 years to life in state prison.

In 2013, Mincey was pimping the 17-year-old victim in Louisiana and decided to bring her to California to make more money. After their arrival, he began posting her ads on various prostitution websites.

Both Mincey and the victim had been staying in a motel room together. One night he woke up and found that she wasn’t in bed beside him. She was by the door using her cell phone. This angered the defendant and he beat her severely.

According to Deputy District Attorney Melissa Rodriguez, who prosecuted the case, the victim crawled under the bed and Mincey told her to come out and “take her licks like a woman.”

“He strangled her to the point that she almost lost consciousness,” Rodriguez said. “After he beat her, he told her he was sorry and that he was acting like his dad.”

The victim later testified that she didn’t want to work for him anymore but that he told her it was too late.

A few days after that beating, a truck driver saw her working as a prostitute at a truck stop in Ontario. The driver called the police because her eyes were pitch red (from the petechial hemorrhaging) and he was concerned.

Ontario Police responded and went to the motel room the two of them shared. Mincey was nowhere to be found.

A few weeks later Mincey was contacted in Fontana after he applied for welfare benefits. When he showed up for his appointment, he was arrested.

“Unfortunately, there was a new victim that was with him,” said Rodriguez. “She was 18-years-old and had recently met the defendant on a bus. He convinced her to work for him as a prostitute and she too was posted on the internet and taken to various tracks to work.”

A track is an area of town commonly known for prostitution activity.

While on one track, the latest victim was picked up by another pimp. That pimp spoke to Mincey and explained that his girl was in his territory and that she was going to be beaten.

As a result, the pimp whose territory had been invaded raped the 18-year-old victim in his car and then returned her to Mincey. Once they returned to the room, Mincey forced her to strip down and hang onto the shower bar in the bathroom. He then beat her with a belt.

“The details surrounding this case are despicable,” District Attorney Mike Ramos said. “This is outright modern day slavery. In the eyes of traffickers, victims are nothing more than a reusable commodity. We will continue to prosecute these monsters and hold them accountable to the fullest extent of the law.”

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It is the mission of the San Bernardino County District Attorney's Office to represent the interests of the people in the criminal justice system, as mandated by California State law. The San Bernardino County District Attorney's Office serves the residents of San Bernardino County by: seeking the truth, protecting the innocent; holding the guilty accountable; preserving the dignity of victims and their families; and, ensuring that justice is done while always maintaining the highest ethical standards.